266 Comments

I just don’t see Jagr happening. That guy loves the limelight and the big city. His girlfriend is probably a model and wants the glamour that NY brought. He’s much more likely to go to LA or some destination like that…

That said, I could see him as a powerplay specialist. He comes on with Pleks, Max, Subban and Cams and they light it up. That would work. Sick hands don’t go away. I could see him as a nice surprise like Lang was… That worked out alright.

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‘Couldn’t score in a brothel’ Gotta love that one..
Fans, remember Mr Ference from Boston who gave Habs players and fans the , well.er you know, finger?? Funny that in further review, that finger had more size than Half our current roster. tee.

For an athlete who makes his living on the ice, Jaromir Jagr spends a lot of time in hot water. In August the IRS filed a lien against the Capitals wing, saying he owed about $350,000 in taxes for 1999, when he played for the Penguins and earned $10 million. According to his management agency, IMG, Jagr satisfied that debt as soon as he learned of it. Then on Feb. 28 the IRS filed a lien stating that the Czech native, now in the second year of a seven-year, $78 million contract, owes about $3.3 million in taxes for 2001. And these aren’t the first financial missteps for the 31-year-old Jagr. Several years ago he owed more than $500,000 to an Internet gambling company.

A source who was close to Jagr when the five-time scoring champ played for Pittsburgh says Jagr gambled mostly on football. There is no indication that Jagr bet on hockey—a violation of NHL rules that would be punishable at the commissioner’s discretion—but his losses are laid out in a June 2000 agreement with a Belize-based gambling website called CaribSports. A document obtained by SI shows that Jagr proposed making nine monthly payments of $37500 and one lump-sum payment of $112,500, a total of $450,000, after the site’s owner, William Caesar, discounted his debt Jagr, who got a line of credit from the site in ’97, made several payments, then stopped, according to Caesar, who says he then made little effort to collect for two years. Last April, as a way to pressure Jagr to pay, Caesar leaked the story to buzzdaly.com, a webzine that covers the gambling industry. He says he immediately received “a little more than 20 percent” of the balance from Jagr’s lawyers—an amount he says he accepted as the final payment.

Jagr’s lawyers maintain that Jagr did not make all the bets himself because a friend had used his password. Caesar says he had technicians configure Jagr’s betting page so he could not wager on NHL games. “We did that for our own protection, not just his,” Caesar said. “That would destroy us, if he destroyed the game.”

On Monday, Jagr declined to comment on either the gambling or the tax matters, referring questions to IMG, which handles his contract but not his finances. IMG also would not discuss the gambling but issued a statement to SI claiming the tax lien was filed for “underestimation of tax withholding and a disqualified write-off,” and added, “The taxes for 2001 will be resolved within the time line and procedures dictated by the IRS.”

Well… After reading this undated article about taxes and gambling attributed to an American magazine’s website I’m convinced that we’re better off just playing North American Travis Moen on the the first line.

Thanks. I’m still curious what games he was playing. It was online and it wasn’t hockey. Is he a bad poker player, a blackjack sucker, were they sportsbets? It’s all very National Enquirer and, really it doesn’t matter to me. For the record, he always bugged me a little, especially that ‘salute’ thing after a goal, but I’m still not certain whether or not he had the best hands I’ve ever seen. Probably so. I think a year of Jagr at <$2M might be worth it if PG can't find a better option.

@Leafs67 below:
About the CBC coverage….personally I will be so happy if CBC loses the rights to TSN one day. (I somehow doubt it will happen)…
I understand CBC wanting the Canucks to win, but man, they are so biased. Glenn Healy is the worst of the bunch I think, he was on the Preds case about diving all series….(even though McLean showed him the replay when a Canuck stick did clip the Nashville player)…..
I am pro-Canadian, although it’s kind of nice that the Habs are the last Cdn team to win the Cup. Hey we Habs fans need something to latch onto, right?

for those of you tired of the spammers posting here, here is an email address that you can write to – it’s one of the people involved in the site that keeps posting its sales in the blog. So if you want to let him know how you feel, it’s:andy.chen6@hotmail.com

not too sure about that – they’ll be too busy wading through all the stuff we send them. anyway, I sent a nasty email and used a secondary email address that I use for anything I’m not too sure about….

Time to close the book on Jagr. Two words: pulled groin.
It would probably happen 5 minutes into training camp. Okay, okay, I’ll be nice. It’ll happen the 2nd day of scrimmaging when he sees how fast everyone else is.

I personally do not like this “Jagr” experiment. For a number of reasons:
1) KHL is a 54 Game reg. season, this is a completely different animal from the NHL’s 82 game season. And in a salary cap world, we can’t have a front line player be a “platoon” player. It’s not like we can sit him every third game to keep him fresh. Think about it, 40 years old, 3 years since he played a full NHL Season.
2) Does zero to help the long term development of this team. This is taking a place on the roster from a Palushaj, Boyd in development.
3) Would far rather overpay slightly and get a Brooks Laich or even gamble on a Joel Ward who are UFA, gritty big forward bodies that can make room for the talented smaller players we currently have on our roster.

Just because Jagr has size, he will not make us any more abrasive. Look at how much better MaxPac made Gionta and Gomez look. That is the kind of body we need with Cammy and Plex.

All just my opinion, I expect to get an earful from all of Jagr’s agents now.

Every team, every year, is going to have short-term hired guns. Was Halpern beneficial to the Canadiens long term development? No, but was he helpful in the Canadiens being a good team this season? Yes he was. Boyd probably won’t be re-signed by the Canadiens unless it’s as an AHL player, and Palushaj could use another year before being rushed up.

Your first point is a good one, perhaps a full NHL season would wear heavily on Jagr after not being used to it anymore. However for Pouliot type money for a guy who always put up big time points and brought it in the playoffs, that’s a worthwhile risk.

Brooks Laich would be great as a Hab, but he’ll be looking for about 4M/yr. Ward wants to stay in Nashville and has made it abundantly clear. You don’t always get your pick of the UFA list, so bargains are worthwhile to look at.

As for being more abrasive, who cares? What Jagr does is open up space in the offensive zone by out-battling everyone else with superior lower body strength while taking the puck to the net. To do that on a line with Plekanec and Cammalleri would be gold.

Andrew, I fully recognize Jagr still has talent, I just think at his age, the fact he hasn’t been in a much more competitive NHL (compared to KHL, where a handful of teams have all the money and skill) chances are greater of failure than success.

Out of curiousity go to hockeydb.com and look up the numbers on Brendan Shanahan, Jeremy Roenick, Mark Messier and Mike Modano. 4 Great players, all of there numbers drop off the table after 37-38 yrs old, some closer to 40. This guy will be 40.

But I think this is all just our speculations anyway, I can’t PG doing something like this, not at all in line with his conservative nature of doing business.

I agree that I think Laich will get more money than he is worth. Unfortunately, Free Agents always get a ton of cash.

Hence why i think we will probably lose out on Wiz. He was fun to have on the roster this year but i don’t see him back next season.
He will lock up with someone for a 5 year deal for big cash.
Think about how much cash Komi got. I wonder if Burke would take a do over on that one?

I can understand Jagr wanting to play in the best league in the world. But why Montreal? Why not Toronto or Ottawa or Florida even. That way he’s guaranteed to be done early and participate in the World Championships which is far more important to the European players.

Secondly, does anyone know how much longer CBC will have the rights to the finals and all playoff games involving Canadian teams? I’m sorry, but what was once the benchmark for hockey broadcasting has become a shadow of its former self. TSN offers by far, superior coverage. Maybe its a case of becoming complacent at the top. Maclean, Stock, Milbury, Cherry, Cole, Healy are quite simply not very good. I’m not at all a fan of Pierre McGuire, but he and his TSN cohorts are much better at what they do.

Hockey Night in Canada went down hill after Dick Irvin retired. Can you imagine, there was a period in thr 80’s when Scotty Bowman was a colour commentator with Irvin. Now that’s hockey
coverage. Not Hrudey, Galley or Milbury, the less said about PJ Stock, the better.

“It’s too much for one guy to shoulder. For us, we’re going to do it as a group. It’s about sharing that responsibility win or lose.” – Mike Cammalleri

I second that opinion, and i would add RDS as having sports coverage far superior to HNIC. And at least TSN has MacKenzie! I’ve been watching broadcasts from all over the league as I subscribe to NHL.com’s Gamecenter. HNIC is pretty well near the bottom for its play-by-play, but then the bottom really falls out when you compare intermission coverage. Nowhere is there anything that can compare to Cherry/Milbury when it comes to essentially ridiculing the game I love by attempting to drag it down to their vision of what the game should be. One can see how well that worked out for Milbury on Long Island. Anyway, you want to hear the Habs well-covered by the broadcast team during play-by-play and intermission? Follow any coverage other than HNIC. You’ll find out way more about our team listening to Jack Edwards in Boston and the rest of the broadcast team there than listening to Cole, Cherry, Milbury and the rest of the dimwads attempting to be sports journalists on HNIC.

Man it is going to be a long summer. All this Jagr talk, roster debates and gomez bashing…..there should be more information posted about the bulldogs and how they are doing as they are headed to the conference final.

I think Serious is the only one who really updates on our prospects.
The habs as an organization like to build from within, which is the right way to do it.
Apparently last night there was only 2500 people at the tripple overtime game.
Too bad. People are missing good hockey. I will be there next week

I am looking forward to it. Nigel Dawes i think should be on our 3rd or 4th line next season. He is playing really well for the dogs. Mind you so is Boyd but I think Dawes is a little more seasoned for the NHL.

shouldn’t be that much conjecture really. All the Habs are going to be able to do is try and shore up their defense. There will be no money to sign a free agent forward. No point in dreaming when there is not sufficient cap space to realize it…

@Andrew: I’m pretty sure I’d be at the back of the line in terms of people that don’t want to see Jagr on this team. And again, it’s my personal opinion!

If you feel that having a 40-year-old player who hasn’t played in the NHL for 3 years is a good thing for Montreal, all the power to you.

My perception of a winning team in the NHL is exactly what I said. 75% North American and 25% European. North Americans’, mainly Canadians, grew up watching hockey and pretended to win the Stanley Cup in their backyards every time the stepped onto the ice.

Some, not all, European players come here to collect a pay cheque before heading back home for the summer.

Why does team Canada dominate in International play when we ice our best team? Because our mixture of heart, skill and toughness is what wins! The Habs need that ingredient more than anything right now and Jagr goes completely against that.

If you want to sign Jagr, piss away the next two years with off ice distractions, be laughed at around the league and miss the playoffs, I feel sorry for you.

Like I said, clear prejudice. If Canada was so dominant, and trust me in that I love Canada, we’d win all the time. We wouldn’t blow a 3 goal lead to Russia in the gold medal game in the WJC, and we wouldn’t get embarrassed like we did in the 2006 Olympics. The truth is that most of those international squads are incredibly evenly matched.

If you think adding Jagr to this team is the best way to beat teams like Boston, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh next season, as I’m entitled to my opinion, you are entitled to yours.

And back to International play, if you think that the Canadian style of play is not superior to that of our competitors, as I’m entitled to my opinion, you are entitled to yours.

And the argument that you’re prejudice for saying you like the Canadian style of play more than other countries or accusing someone of being a Don Cherry worshiper because you want to see the Habs toughen up is a real cop out…

You’re clearly not reading what I’ve said. That’s fine seeing as you think Boston won because they’re “tough”, which means you either didn’t watch the series or you don’t know anything about hockey. Have a good day, I’m out because this is a senseless conversation where you’re obviously wrong but won’t admit it.

Neither of those areas are even relevant. That’s a media-made story that doesn’t exist. Scoring is what needs to be improved, as well as getting younger on D, which will happen when we wave goodbye to Hamrlik.

There’s a big difference between not wanting Jagr (one specific European player) and arguing that North American players are superior to Europeans. And there’s definitely a big difference between arguing that NA players are better than Euros and arguing that you should build a team based on nationality.

You should put the best players you can get on your team. Period. If the best players available are European, North American or Martian, you put them on your team.

Canada is the most successful country in International hockey history, but the trend is moving away from us. We invented the game and we have more hockey fans per capita than any other country. For a very long time, we dominated because we cared more than anyone else. However, as the international popularity of hockey improves, we dominate less and less. It has nothing to do with whether or not we “ice our best team.” That’s some real sore-loser talk right there. Sometimes, believe it or not, players from other countries form a better team. I know it might sound crazy to you, but just because someone isn’t from North America (not sure what the USA did to earn a spot in your coveted 75% – the USA is not as successful in international play as Russia, for instance) does not automatically mean they are less worthy of a roster spot. It is simply bigoted to believe so.

So far all of the Jagr talk, does anyone of any solid and reliable information to support this rumour?
So much is being said, but I can’t find much proof of anything.
Like saying he’d want a 1 year deal for 2 millions, but I’ve heard it was 2 years at 2 millions each, and also one year at 4 millions.

I posted a comment on how great Pleks and Jagr play together and it really has spawned a life of its own. I had no idea there were even rumors of it happening until someone replied to me that the Habs were one of the teams on Jagr’s short list if he decided to come back to the NHL.

I googled and found a few articles.

Also JT (who writes great articles all the time) has a piece on this, I just noticed a minute ago.

1) He already has chemistry with Plekanec. They’ve played very well together several times for the Czech Republic. They work out together in the summer and Plekanec credits Jagr with helping him get over that one bad season.

2) He’s made his money already, if he wants to play in the NHL it’ll probably be for a contract similar to what Pouliot had. The Habs can afford that contract, even if they keep Wisniewski providing they cut Pouliot loose.

3) Putting Jagr on the RW with Plekanec and Cammalleri allows the team to move Andrei Kostitsyn down to the 3rd line with Eller, giving us a huge boost in depth and allowing Andrei to play against weaker competition with a solid center for a whole year. For extra jump you can move DD onto that line as a winger when you’re looking for goals.

4) No one is expecting an 80 point season from Jagr, but it’s likely we could be surprised. He scored over a point per game for Omsk this year in the extremely low scoring KHL. I would be expecting ~55 points, but like I said, he could surprise.

3) Putting Jagr on the RW with Plekanec and Cammalleri allows the team to move Andrei Kostitsyn down to the 3rd line with Eller, giving us a huge boost in depth and allowing Andrei to play against weaker competition with a solid center for a whole year. For extra jump you can move DD onto that line as a winger when you’re looking for goals.

THIS is the big reason I would do it. The Habs need to figure out a way to have AK46 on a line with Eller so that we can roll 3 good scoring lines. I also love the idea of being able to slot in Desharnais on that line as a winger as well.

Whether it’s Jagr or someone else, PG needs to find someone to play with Pleks and Cammy who will allow us to roll 3 scoring lines. Having 3 good lines is what made Philly and Chicago so touhg last year and what makes Vancouver and San Jose so tough this year.

To be honest I had no idea that there were rumors of Jagr coming to Montréal until a Bruins fan on this site replied to my post informing me.

I just know Pleks and Jagr have great chemistry and was wondering on others thoughts of trying to bring him over for a year or two. And seeing what Pleks does when playing with Jagr, I can only imagine the possibilities, when adding Cammalleri to that equation.

Yeah I think it could be a great fit. A gamble? Well that depends on the price. Not like he would be taking a spot away from anyone that is really capable of putting up those numbers. Most fans want AK46 gone, so what then?

When Pacioretty comes back, he must play with Gomez and the Captain. So who goes with Pleks and Cammalleri if Andrei is gone (or even if he stays), I really like the idea of him playing with Eller on the 3rd line for a season.

Regarding AK, I like him much better with Eller. He’s a player who can survive against top competition, but he doesn’t produce a hell of a lot. Put him on the 3rd line with some PP time and he might have a career year. His play with Eller this year for about 10 games was excellent.

I find it kind of crazy that people would even consider this? People are looking at the stats sheet way too much.
Montreal can definitely use some more scoring punch but most importantly they need to add some character and toughness. Jagr isn’t small and he can take some abuse to get into scoring position but we’ve already got enough of a European flavor to this team.
I’m not prejudice and some of my favorite players in the NHL are of European decent. Aside from Detroit, all winning teams have a core of tough North American forwards with a few European players to complement them.
We’re fine with Plekanec, Kostisyn and Eller up front. We don’t need a has been who only thinks about himself to come in and ruin the chemistry.

“Jagr isn’t small and he can take some abuse to get into scoring position but we’ve already got enough of a European flavor to this team.”

“I’m not prejudice and some of my favorite players in the NHL are of European decent. Aside from Detroit, all winning teams have a core of tough North American forwards with a few European players to complement them.”

Not prejudiced… Right. Who won the Conn Smythe for Pittsburgh? The top offensive stars in NJ for years were Elias and Sykora. We have plenty of North Americans on this team.

You know what not being prejudiced is? Looking at players individually based on how they would benefit the team, and ignoring where they’re from. You’ve already called Jagr a baby which is complete BS. The only knock on him is that he’s sometimes a dick to fans, and that was when he was young and immature.

4) It is also worth noting that Jagr’s KHL stats have stayed pretty much the same for all three years he’s been in the league. Leading one to believe that Jagr hasn’t suffered any further decline in ability to produce. Unless his game fell off a cliff before his first KHL season, it is realistic to think he can still produce in the 50-60 range.

Adding a guy like Jagr does nothing to build this team the correct way. I’d much rather see the Habs sign a younger player that has a chance to possibly sign another contract with the team two or three years down the road, rather than some Band-Aid solution.
Signing Jagr would put us through the same crap the Sens went through with Kovalev the last 2 seasons. Fans questioning his heart and wondering why he shows up once every five games or so.
Too old and too much potential for drama. Stick with building the team the correct way and do not perform patchwork by signing some over-the-hill drama queen that will only cause problems in a pretty solid dressing room.

Just came back from a business trip from the west coast and those Vancouver fans are so cocky and arrogant.
I’ll root for Boston, Detroit, San Jose, Tampa Bay in that order of the remaining teams to make it to the final, really don’t want Vancouver at all!
Yeah, the last of the Canadian teams but they are not a fan of our Canadiens or any other Canadian team in the NHL base don my conversations out there with the fans.

BS! You hope for a team that is long overdue to win a Cup with their rich history and being an original 6 team.
Stop being a cry baby! Our Habs are out and I’d rather root for a an Original 6 team than a franchise team to win it all.
Show some good sportsmanship. Geeeeez!
Yes, the Bruins are a great team with chemistry, size skill, a good D and a great Conn Smythe candidate in Thomas in goal and a very good coach in Julien.
Too many sore sports can’t accept defeat lightly, unbelievable I say!

What a load. Based on this, it sounds like the only reason you are rooting for the Bruins over the Red Wings is due to the length of time Boston has been without a Cup. I don’t see how a “Habs fan” could root for their team’s archrival to win a Cup over another worthy team (original six, great team, great chemistry, size, way more skill, and multiple award candidates, and a way better coach) based solely fact that the archrival hasn’t won since 1972. You really want Bruin fans who hate everything about Montreal and the Canadiens to enjoy winning a Cup?

it has nothing to do with being a poor sport. I accept the Bruins eliminated the Habs this year because we couldn’t put the puck in the net when it counted.

It’s just that I love the Habs, and with all the hatred and rivalry between the teams, throughout history, and especially this year, whenever I see the Bruins suceeding it gives me a negative feeling in my gut, because I hate that team.

Sorry retro, but if you don’t hate the Bruins, then you don’t love the Canadiens. If you can’t see that it’s not ok for a Habs fan to be cheering for the Bruins, then you are a “fair-weather fan” at the best, and a closet Bruins lover at the worst.

There’s alot of Habs bashers on this site that are big fans of the Habs, and are just unhappy with their current direction(which is fine, we are all entitled to our own opinion)… but you don’t see any of them cheering for the Bruins.

In short: A TRUE HAB FAN WOULD NEVER CHEER FOR THE BRUINS TO WIN THE CUP.

Thank you an intelligent post by someone pertaining to the Vancouver Canucks’ fans in general.
Perhaps if most of these posters here fly to Vancouver and see what that remaining “Canadian” team they are cheering for really feel about us Canadiens’ fans or other Canadian teams, they will change their mind.
Then, perhaps, they will have second doubts as to why they should root for an original 6 team than a Florida or California team for pete’s sake or than those crazy Canucks and their fans.
Yep, let’s go Bruins, they’ve earned it after eliminating our Habs.

Most sports fans will agree that it starts with the fans when rooting for another team.
Example, most hate the Green Bay Packers because of their “Cheesehead” fans, the Yankees of baseball are detested by their loud obnoxious fans, the Leafs are hated by their fans, etc.
Yeah, the Bruins fans are idiots but they can;t be worse than those Crazy idiot Canucks fans, at least the Bruins fans show respect, been in Boston and that’s the truth!

Vancouver fans may be arrogant and cocky but they are probably still hurting since the 1994 defeat. They also have been waiting 40 years for the Stanley Cup.

However Bruins fans are the worst. They defend :
their player insulting the Canadiens medical staff,
a player giving the finger to the Bell Centre crowd,
a player speering to get a crucial go ahead goal in game 7
getting away with a disallowed goal in game 6
illegal hits from behind, calling it finishing their checks

All because Campbell’s father is in charge of league suspensions and fines. When Bergeron is hit from behind they say it was not necessary for the hit to happen because he got rid of the puck by then. However they call the reckless hit by Chara on Pacioretty a hockey play.

Even the Bruins media are the worse among the league.

Of the remaining teams, it would be nice to see a rookie coach and GM turn around a struggling team and help them win the Cup.

“It’s too much for one guy to shoulder. For us, we’re going to do it as a group. It’s about sharing that responsibility win or lose.” – Mike Cammalleri

Not my point – age doesn’t immediately make someone useless. Good hands and smart hockey sense don’t automatically diminish simply because your face gets wrinkly. I argue if you could pick corners like a pro at 20 – you can do it at 50 just as well.

The only worry is skating ability, fitness level and drive. Seems to me all 3 looked pretty good during the olympics…..

I disagree. Federer is faltering because he can’t keep up the pace with a player like Nadal or Djokovic for 5 sets. Federer can still drop a shot at the back of the court like no other though.

Same thing with hands for a hockey player. I have no doubt that Jagr can’t keep pace with younger players for 20 minutes in a hockey game, but I am POSITIVE if he is open in a shooting position, he still knows how to roff the puck. He can also still thread a pass through a couple of defenders.

Ever hear stories from older guys who got to play with old-time NHLers? They always marvel at how the old NHLers were ALWAYS able to get them the puck on their tape in limited space.

It is why sports that favor stamina like marathon running and cross-country skiing typically have older champions, while sports that require quickness, dexterity, and balance, like tennis or gymnastics, are for younger athletes.

Sad fact is, yes, age does cost a scorer his hands. Not only is the athlete slower and take longer to recover from injuries, he also has to deal with more younger and faster players and better D and goalies. A KHL player for the last 3 seasons, Jagr is well beyond a comeback, although it does make for a little fun idle speculation on a beautiful Spring day.

I don’t have a problem with Jagr’s age, it’s his work ethic that I find questionable. And his heart. And..and..and…
I loved Robert Lang, and I was very happy to see him come here, regardless of age.
I don’t think that Jagr would bring the same classy veteran attitude that Lang had.

If a deal is properly structured, the only palpable risk to pickin’ up Jagr would be his impact on the dressin’ room and, in that respect, I’ve never viewed Jaromir as a problem child. No, he’s not the Pope, but neither is he a Kovy. One has to consider that with the risk contained, it becomes an issue of potential upside.

Frankly, if Jagr is ready and willin’, and wants to don a Habs uni, I can see it maybe workin’ under two circumstances:

* He accepts somethin’ in the neighbourhood of Poolio money for one season.
* He commits to an epic conditionin’ program over the course of the summer.

If that can’t happen – and odds are it can’t – then g’bye. Nothin’ ventured, nothin’ gained. And, for all we know, this whole story is just another aimless walk through the park.

Most of you probably already know this, but for those who don’t, when you mix the letters in Jaromir around, you yield Mario Jr. At one time, that was some devastatin’ and smooth-as-shiznat hockey, baby.

Here’s one way: Consistent, thermonuclear suspensions. In particular, when motive and overt, reckless disregard for a player’s safety are as clear as a hot summer day. Chara’s successful-to-the-point-he-wishes-he-maybe-hadn’t-done-it attempt to injure MaxPac would be a prime example.

Julio Uglyasass doesn’t sound whiny or two-faced about the whole thing. Based on his fumbly gibberish, I think it’s fair to say he sounds like a guy who believes the Giroux hit was clean but has to find a way to stand up for his player.

This comment from Mark Recchi was, however, a hair unexpected, “The concussion was really a non-factor. Maybe for a day or two, Bergy felt it, and then he was fine a couple days later. I believe, yeah, my team was trying to get Giroux suspended and they embellished it a little bit.” Well, you can call the ol’ guy many things, but inconsistent isn’t one of them.

Read the Friedman comment on the Bobby Clobbers and their perennial goaltendin’ issues, one that has been a particularly glarin’ outlier in the last two playoffs. The funny thing is that, although Elliotte cannot possibly be serious, the scenario he outlines is probably exactly what the Bobby Clobbers will do. I wouldn’t be anywhere near surprised to see the twits re-sign Boucher or, barrin’ that, wade into the UFA market to sign Pascal “Injury Reserve” Leclaire.

And, for eff’s sake, the linesmen in the playoffs are a bit out of control with the puck-drop power-trippin’.

I agree with you that the impact on the dressing room is the ONLY downside to signing Jagr at a bargain-basement price. People acting like Jagr would only score 30 points playing with Pleks and Cammy are nuts. Hands don’t disappear with age. Body positioning doesn’t disappear with age. He may be slower, but I guarantee he still knows how to put a puck in the net or feed the puck to a linemate.

As for the impact on the dressing room, I don’t think it would be a big deal. Our room has many leaders, so I don’t think he would be allowed to have an ego. Plus, Pleks would keep him happy.

Still wouldn’t be my Plan A though. He makes for a real solid Plan B or C. At the right price.

It is rather silly of you to think that. This is why we keep thinking the JM is so great – because he gets us into the playoffs, which is great. But since playoffs performance doesn’t matter, he can’t be judged past game 82.

I have two word for people who would like to see Jaromir Jagr with the Habs: Trevor Linden.

Getting old farts like these is not the way to go. Jagr! LMFAO……

The Habs are not winning the Cup with their current line-up any ways and wont have a sniff at it unless of course Gomez gets 70 points and plays lights out in the play-offs, which I have my serious doubts about happening, even given Gomez’ mea culpa.

Habs would be better off trying to build their prospects pool by trading what they can for picks.

As far as Gomez is concerned I’d rather see Boyd, Palushaj and Dawes with the Habs instead of Gomez.

Oogh.
Please stop talking about Jagr coming here!
He’s washed up!
People seem to want the Habs to become the new Laffs: The NHL’s Retirement Team.
“Career finished? Not getting the milage per gallon anymore? Looking to reminisce about the good ol’ days when you used to be a top scorer? Come to Montreal! Fans here will love you for as long as it takes them to realize that it’s no longer 1998, and that your kids are being drafted by teams in their division with the top draft picks they traded to get you! Come on along!”

I always wondered why, in 06-07, when Jagr was leading the league in points, why he wasn’t invited to the All-Star Game.

Well, what would you say if the Habs trade A.Kost to the Pens for Eric Tangradi and a pick, and Sign Jagr for a year, Tangradi needs a year or two to become a top 6, and Jagr can fill in for a year.
Cammy-Pleck-Jagr
Max-Gomez-Gio
Tangradi-Eller-x
looks like a decent top 9 with size, speed and skill to me.

When I made my post below, I was just curious on others thoughts. Pleks plays very well with Jagr, nobody can deny that.

What I don’t understand is every fan of the Habs wants more scoring, but then there is that part of a CAP era to deal with. You can’t just go out and spend Crosby, Ovie, etc money. If you do, you sacrifice somewhere else. So it is not just a simple equation of getting that BIG, SCORING winger…

Jagr is old, yes. But IMO, I think he can still play and if the price is right, it might not be a bad idea to bring him in for a year or two. I really think he could challenge for top scorer on the Habs.

I know what you’re saying, RC, but I also think that he would be the unchallenged butthole of the Canadiens as well.

If we thought Kovy was ‘mercurial’, we ain’t seen nothing yet.

When I was living in Poland during the lockout, Jagr came back to play for his old home-team in Czech Republic. He was treated like an absolute superstar by ALL the press in Czech. He was on the front cover of the papers, magazines, everything. He led his team to the top of the league, and the team sold out every home and away game they played.

Suddenly, the KHL decided that they’d like Jaggy to play in their league, so they waved some money at him. What did he do to his native country, and his team, and his adoring fans? He ran after the handful of cash.

What he said to his team’s fanatic fans really said a lot to me about the kind of person he is:
“When I came here I never said that I’d be staying for the WHOLE season…”

Here’s a thought/question. We always assume that we want to sign Markov and Gorges in that order. In that case, we see Wiz as the possible odd man out. If it comes down to it, why wouldn’t we choose Wiz over Josh? I know Josh is tighter defensively, but I think Wiz is adequate and brings a lot more offensively.

Its not just about offensive numbers, Gorges brings a lot to the table that doesn’t show up in stats. I really like Wiz, and was hoping we get him last offseason when the Ducks were looking to trade him, but Markov>>Wiz, and before people bring up Markov’s injuries, remember Wiz had the same injuires to the same knee 3 times.

It is a question of balance, and being able to best fill the needed roles. I think Wiz is better than Gorges, however if Markov and Subban make up 2/6 of the D, then a player, such as Gorges is likely to have more value has he better fits the uncovered needs of the team.

Arguments on all sides for sure. What I am wondering lately is how their recovery timelines play into negotiations with Markov and Gorges – i.e. you want to wait as long as possible to see how they are recovering, but the longer you wait the harder it becomes to negotiate these three and all the other contracts up this year.

Hard to do much negotiating at all until you know what Markov and Gorges will make (I am assuming they are the priorities) and how much the Wiz would want if he were to stay also…

It does sound familiar, except that in Nashville’s case they did not spend over 20mil on just 3-4 players that were supposed to produce and didn’t. They are simply thin on talent and big on heart. In case of the Habs, it’s the reverse, as far as the forwards go.

heres my 2 cents on the jagr rumor. i hope it never happens, i am a jagr fan but at 39 yrs of age and 2 million. i would pass. PG’s priority is lock up markov and wiz (please!) get a big tough relatively young 3rd liner whos good at faceoffs. organize yourself for the 2012-2013 season to give cp31 the long term contract he needs.

Okay, I generally like Elliotte Friedman and his 30 Thoughts Blog but I have had some serious headscratching moments with today’s edition.

“9) Not sure the Flyers need to go out and get another goalie. Sergei Bobrovsky had a pretty good year for a guy who had zero North American experience and didn’t know the language. Would’ve been better if Philly stuck with him like the Washington Capitals did with Michal Neuvirth. Anyway, better Bobrovsky than wasting money on Ilya Bryzgalov.”

– Just expect Bobrovsky to get better and maybe by the time he is, your Cup Window is over or bring in Bryzgalov and maybe take a swing at the title for once? I’d call that an easy choice.

“12) If I were the Vancouver Canucks, I would be worried about this – Chris Kelly may have deserved a penalty, but because Roman Hamrlik was diving so often, there was no call. Big goal to give up in a Game 7.”

Since when does Roman Hamrlik dive? Honestly, he goes down because he’s a greybeard who’s taken way too much ice time in the last two years.

Pros: 9th all-time in the NHL, 12th all-time in playoff scoring. Scored at least 30 goals in 15 of his 17 NHL seasons. At 2 million as it has been suggested, he’s a much better-looking option than Travis Moen on the Top-6. While MTL waits for guys like Leblanc, Avtsin, Kristo to be ready for the show, he fills a need. He also has a very good friendship with Tomas Plekanec.

Cons: Has not played in the NHL for 3 years and while the KHL is a competitive, professional league, they have a much lighter schedule so he may not take the grind very well. Is a very new and possibly dissenting personality to add to the room, it may be fine but not everyone works everywhere. Age, Jagr will be turning 40 this year and this is a young man’s game right now with a few exceptions here and there. Production, despite playing in a league that’s lower in quality in the NHL, Jagr has not truly been dominant, maybe his style works better in the NHL but he’s not Top 5 in scoring each year like you might expect.

None of us know what PG’s priorities are or what his gameplan is, but I would imagine Markov is the number one priority, and Wiz will be too expensive to keep. If that is the case, and PG wants to add depth to his offense (which he should), I would think the number one choice would be to get Laich, then Leino.

If you can only get one of them, or neither, I would kick the tires on Jagr at 2 million, because the upside of that signing is much higher than anything else we would be able to do in free agency at that price point.

I know he’s old and much slower, but he shows natural chemistry with Plekanec. If Pleks thinks he can still play, that’s good enough for me. Putting him on the right side of Cammy and Pleks could pay huge dividends, and it would allow us to roll three decent scoring lines. AK46 could play with Eller all year and build on the chemistry they showed for a brief period. Max Pac plays with Gomez and Gionta, and we actually have some depth.

Plus, it means adding another guy with useful experience who has won a cup. Wouldn’t be my number one option, but it would be a good Plan B or C.

Habs don’t need to bring Jagr. Enough with the washed up has beens. We’ve had plenty of those and this is not what we need. Of course, before we make any player changes we need to change the GM, his string pulling master (aka special advisor) and the coach.

Listen, I am not going to pretend that Bob Gainey is perfect (or PG for that matter), but I believe both have done a good job of bringing the Habs back to some measure of consistent respectability. Do people not remember how shitty we were as an organization in the mid-to-late nineties and early 2000s?

Gainey did not promise to bring a Cup to Montreal in 5 years. That’s not what 5-year plan means. When you inherit a roster like Gainey did, you can’t possibly think you are going to win the cup in 5 years. Don’t forget, we had ZERO prospects at that time.

5-year plan to me was always about bringing us back to respectability. I think he achieved that and then some. Playoffs 4 out of those 5 years (eliminated in last game in the only year we didn’t make them). 1st in the conference another year. That’s pretty damn good if you ask me.

Winning the Stanley Cup is HARD! Ask the Sharks, Canucks, Flyers, Capitals, etc. All teams that have had WAY more talent to deal with than us in past years and have not won the ultimate prize either.

5 QUESTIONS:
1. At which POSITION do we most need a new player?
2. What available UFA would you most like to see in a Habs uniform?
Here’s a list: http://www.mynhltraderumors.com/tag/2011-nhl-free-agents/
3. Would you like to see Jagr in a Habs uniform for 4mil/year?
4. Are the Habs as good without Muller?
5. Is Julien really a whiner? Or just a hypocrite?

1. RW/LW after AK/Gio on RW and Patches/Cammy on LW, Habs top natural wingers are Moen, Darche and Pouliot who if you combined Moen’s size with Darche’s work ethic and Pouliot’s skill you’d have a hell of a player but alas… The 2011 Entry Draft needs to address the lack of punch on the wings for future years. Gallagher, Kristo, Avtsin are all RW, Leblanc may become a RW but there’s not one good natural LW in the system.

2. I’d take Laich above all others, provided Gauthier can make the salary cap sing to his tune.

3. No, if the talk is true he’d take 2 that’s fine but at his age that’s far too much cash.

4. Won’t know until we see who his replacement is really, probably next year special teams will take a hit but a lot of assistants are good at being the Player’s Coach.

1. As difficult as it will be, due to the Gomez contract, Montreal needs a center more than anything. Plekanec is a great number two but he isn’t a number one. Look at the other teams around the league who have done well in the playoffs – at the center position – compared to Montreal. We need a BIG centerman!

2. Off the top of my head, Bieksa and Laich were the two that caught my attention last time i looked at the list.

3. Jagr….NEVER!

4. As much as we like to pretend we know what goes on in the dressing room and on the bench, we’ll never know how much of an impact Muller really has on the team until he moves on…

5. Julien is a hot head that is lucky his team has faced Montreal and Philadelphia who both have major injuries.

Funny headline. A tragedy for the CBC would be to see the Bruins eliminated with all the Bruin-nut huggers on that network.

I’m curious to see how the Bolts do. St Louis on song would give the slow the Boston D headaches. You would think if the little guy is matched up against Chara, this would be the big goon’s worst possible match up. An ultra fast skilled winger with low center of gravity who can change direction on a dime.

I don’t see either of these teams winning the cup, but after this past year, I hope I never see Boston anywhere near the grail.

Interestin articles. My fav part of it all: “You see value in players other people don’t see. Because some people only see goals and assists and flashy plays. They don’t understand what a guy can do for you in a certain role.”

Proof of this: Gomez’s incredible value flies in the face of any stats. Goals, assists, plus-minus, scoring chances, shooting % – NONE of these suggests he’s even close to being a top 6 NHL forward, let alone the superstar we know he is.

That’s how you protect the lead. Vancouver still carried the play and got the puck in Nashville’s zone. Montreal struggles with protecting leads because they’re too small and Martin’s system is too passive.

The Bruins do alot of whining don’t they? It’s always the same, the so-called tough guys really are the complainers. I wish they would just suck it up once in a while. Surprised Marchand isn’t blaming the Habs for bergeron’s concussion, or Jack the nutcase on NESN hasn’t somehow made a connection.

“But was it borderline late? Maybe. But it’s kind of real iffy. I don’t know that it was intended to injure. It was just an unfortunate hit.”

I dont really think that is whining. He is answering the question asked of him. As far as the rest of it it was mostly commentary on finding that fine line between the physicality of the game vs. the safety of the players and the whole concussion issue. I think thats fair and not very whiney at all.

Troll: “someone who posts inflammatory, extraneous, or off-topic messages in an online community, such as an online discussion forum, chat room, or blog, with the primary intent of prokoing readers into an emotional response or otherwise disrupting normal on-topic discussion”.

Theres a difference between trolling and a difference of opinion. This message is trolling. The ABOVE message is a difference of opinion. It’d be good of you to learn the difference. And seeing how HI/O “encourages lively discussion” I would appreciate my opportunity to post my opinion. Thanks

Has nothing to do with being butt hurt. I actually kind of enjoy the fact that your most intelligent comeback is “Bruins suck”. Its just kinda silly that someone brings in an actual discenting opinion with things to back his argument and Im accused of trolling. I could be a hell of a lot more disrepectful to all of you but I choose not to and actually enjoy the actual informed and respectful Habs fans and their discussions.

Blah, blah, blah. As I said, it’s whining, it’s all the time, and it’s boring. It’s just another case of the Bruins never doing anything wrong, and everybody else out to get them. Blah, blah, blah. Boring.

I agree. Much as I dislike Julien’s habit of sending his goons out in a game the Bruins are losing, I think that in this case he wasn’t whining, just answering the question. The hit was unfortunate, the more so as it happened to Patrice Bergeron, a guy who has a history of concussions. That said, I think the league should take a tougher stance on hits that are intended to injure, as well as on cheapshots, like Ference’s hit on Halpern.

If Ference had gotten suspended for that hit on Halpern I wouldnt have argued that. While he didnt “run him” he didnt attempt to get out of the way either and he did lift his shoulder. It was a dumb move. I can agree with that. But if that is a suspendable offense then Pouliot trying to run Boychuk is also suspendable offense. White lined up Boychuk and that was all fine and a great hit. Pouliot was clearly late on that one. This argument can go both ways.

It seems most arguments can go both ways. But I think fans of all teams can agree that officiating and disciplinary measures in the NHL are a joke. What is a suspendable offence in one case is overlooked in another. Sometimes marginal offences are called, sometimes they’re not, and there’s no consistency to any of it.

JF – Agreed 100%. The NHL’s Wheel of Punishment is rediculous and makes the sport look like a joke. I am all for Colin Campbell getting the axe and getting a committee together, not only to dole out punishments, but to sit down and hammer out something more concrete as to what legitimate punishments are. And frankily, I hope during the next CBA they do something about the max fine being $2500. You want to see dirty hits taken out of the league? Hit the players in the wallet where it hurts most.

Beautifully executed open ice hit on a player who’s had trouble keeping his head up and paying attention. Bruins hate when Campbell or the league can’t stick their finger in to fix things every time so they start to whine as a result.

I don’t mean to be Mr. Negative this morning but Jagr is a piece of garbage lol! Very skilled hockey player but does nothing but sulk and whine and rarely gives it 100%. Plus he’s almost 40 and is half the player he was 10 years ago.

Everyone does, but it becomes a question of supply and demand. The only UFA who has 30 goals is Selanne, and it’s the Ducks or crazy expensive speeding tickets in Finland for him. Trades for these types of players are very costly. It becomes apparent quickly that Jagr on a 1-year $2-3M deal becomes a worthwhile risk, given the market for point producers.

If anyone was willing to pay Jagr the kind of money he feels he is worth, then he would not be over in Europe playing. I don’t see where he could fit with the Habs, the cap, team chemistry or anything else. Would Jagr play on the third or fourth line? Not likely, so you would have to pay him top-six wages. And that’s top-six wages in high figures due to his former star status. The Habs have to continue their movement towards young players, not ex-NHL has beens. I can’t see Jagr being able to justify the cost.

One year at 2 mil does make you want to think twice, but a part of me would be asking “why is he willing to come and play for just one year at 2 million?”. Doesn’t that make you question the motive? It sends up warning signals to me. Smells of a player who wants to grab a quick buck and maybe not put the effort into his play, the way you would expect him to play. I don’t trust those situations. I don’t see a $2mil ex-NHL player coming back and playing like a $5mil young player, so I would wonder if it was really worth it. Risky, at best.

Heres a question for you though. With all the contracts coming off the books that you guys have, is 1 year @ $2 mil really that big a hit to the cap to try to catch lightning in a bottle for a year? Youve got quite a few young guys that are looking good (Patches, White etc.) with the Bulldogs. What do you see coming in free agency that says $2 mil is too much to spend for a chance to kick the tires on a guy who has proved in the past that he is a big time player?

If he’s willing to play for $2M then it is highly unlikely a money grab, based on the below quote he made well north of $2M in the KHL. If he comes back, its because he wants to play in the world’s best league again.

“Jaroslav Zidek, Jagr’s agent, was not specific on the contract terms, other than his client’s base salary will be lower than in the previous two seasons, but with more performance bonuses. Jagr’s annual salary for the first two years with Omsk was reported to be in the range of $7 million.”

Sergei Kostitsyn was invisible the whole series? Does this mean that Pierre Gauthier isn’t an idiot anymore or was it still a colossal failure by management two let to of the greatest players to ever wear Habs uniforms (Halak & Kostitsyn) move to other teams. Gimme a break – who needs’em!!!

Im loving the fact that the headline is about the Canucks, you have articles about the Bulldogs, which is something everyone on here has been screaming about since the Habs got eliminated and you all automatically jump to the Bruins headline that is second from the bottom.

That being said, Im going to agree with you on this. It was a hockey play. Bergy has been our best all around player for years now and I first and foremost hope for a full recovery (which before you jump on me about being all “hypocritical” I have said the same about Pacioretty on Bruins sites) and secondly that he is able to go for the tampa series at some point. But dirty hit? I dont think it was at all. It was finishing a check.

I personally hope Bergeron, Chara and Sidenberg are injured next year when the Habs and Bruins play in the first round. The only thing that will be different is Montreal will sweep Boston instead of needing seven like the Bruins did with Pacioretty, Markov and Gorges missing this year.

I see your point on that and can appreciate it but I would say that any given year teams get “lucky” with how injuries for team take place. I mean, we have been without Savvy for a while now and that would change the dynamic of the team too. I do have to say that, while Prongs being in the lineup would have changed how we played the Flyers, it would have taken more games but the outcome would have been the same. I dont think tampa Bay gets out of the first round if Sid, Geno and (dare i say it) Cooke were suiting up for the Pens. Any given Cup title you could look at and say that winner might have had a harder run if certain players werent injured. But I do think that youre right about getting breaks with the injuries that have happened this year.

it has nothing to do with my sites sucking. It has everything to do with enjoying having spirited debate with “true” hockey fans of other teams and pissing off the people who just hate the Bruins more than actually loving their team.

“Bruins general manager Peter Chiarelli thought the hit was a bit late, and Julien called it “borderline” Sunday morning.”

This is coming from the masters of late hits.

He (the neckless guy) also said: “I mean you’re told to finish your checks, but yet there’s times where you say, well, he’s made the pass and let’s turn and get back into the play.”

This is coming from a coach whose players often have zero interest in the puck. The Bruins try to injure players. Once one of their own players goes down they should at least have the decency to completely stfu.

There is a difference between “borderline” and calling a play dirty. Giroux is one of those guys who plays right on the edge and Im ok with that. But to imply that PC and Julien are coming out and making it sound like they are villifying the hit is incorrect. They answered the question asked of them.

It was a clean bodycheck. There’s no debate there…but in true Bruins fashion you have Ciarelli and Julien questioning the hit.

Live by the sword, die by the sword. After seeing Bruins players take liberties at defenseless players, I have no issue with them getting a taste of their own medicine. I hate what the organization has become and can’t stand their fans and media.

Jaybee – PC maybe questioning it but I dont see Julien questioning it. He DID say in there that there was no intent to injure and it was an “unfortunate hit” and talked about finishing checks and the physicality of the game vs players safety. As far as “living and dying by the sword” the B’s play a very physical game and of course injuries are going to happen for both of us.

Bruins play physical but they also play dirty at times. I hate their attitude. From Recchi questioning Pacioretty, to Chara saying he had no idea Pacioretty was on the ice, to Ferrence giving the finger to the crowd and then playing it off “you know I’m a good guy”, to wanting to fight Subban for delivering clean hits, to Lucic punching Dominic Moore in the side of the head when he wasn’t even engaged with him, to Cam Neely acting like a spoiled brat in the press to Claude Julien complaining about every call. I hate your organization. Of course I’m a bit biased, but it’s only recently that I’ve hated your organization. When you swept the Habs a couple years back…I didn’t hate you. This year, I truly do hate your organization. No offense to you, I mean, there’s nothing I like about your organization, fans, media except for the actual players themselves (Bergeron, Lucic, Seidenberg, Rask, etc).

Thats fine. I respect that. There are plenty of things that I dislike about the Canadiens organization, most of their players (not all) and a large part of their fan base. And their are plenty of things that Im not impressed with either (like Ference flipping off the Montreal crowd). I just like to think that there is a way that,as a B’s fan, we can all have respectful debates about things like we are having without the name calling and stuff. So thanks for hearing me out.

“And a lot of it is culture. I think it’s something that at some point you hope that everybody’s going to get on the same page, players, coaches and everybody involved in the game of hockey, and say, we’ve got to change the culture here and try to minimize those things. But easier said than done.”

Makes sense. Too bad he didn’t say it after the Pacioretty incident. Or even, that he didn’t say it to his enraged ape before he went out on his head hunting mission.

Bergeron jumped into the hit? Are you kidding? He had just completed a pass. If he had seen the hit coming, he would have done something to protect himself. How can you embellish a hit that probably ended your season? You think he went to the locker room to draw a penalty? That hit may not have been enough to knock most guys out of a game but that’s all it took to put him out. I’m guessing he is out for the rest of the playoffs.

IMO “finishing the check” is a load. There’s so much of a delay in many cases that it’s more like “initiating the check.” If it’s a bang-bang situation, it’s acceptable, but “finishing the check” seconds later, when you have to cross 6′ of ice to do it, is not acceptable.

Well, if Raffi Torres is allowed to make that hit on Seabrook, then pretty much anything goes. The league has failed big time…I don’t even blame the players…they have no idea what hits are/aren’t illegal.